The sporting season we've been waiting for all summer is finally here. Not the NFL; it's the Contender Series, where 100 or so UFC hopefuls will battle to earn a UFC contract.
We have a relative rarity on this week's Contender Series with no returning fighters from past seasons. It's always more fun getting a fresh crop of ten new prospects, and we've got some reasonably close matchups as well.
Check out the latest Dana White's Contender Series Week 8 odds with my picks and predictions for each bout on the Tuesday, September 22, fight card.
DWCS Season 10 Episode 8 of Contender Series streams tonight on Paramount+ at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT) from the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas.
As with all DWCS events, some of the winners – and even some of the losers – could earn an official UFC contract tonight. In fact, the Contender Series has become the UFC's primary feeder system for new talent.
UFC CEO Dana White will be cageside tonight. The UFC boss will determine which fighters have earned a contract with their performances, which also count as official MMA bouts on the fighters' records.
As a reminder, some sportsbooks can be slow to open Contender Series odds and betting markets, though nearly every major sportsbook eventually does post them. And don't forget that you can track your Contender Series bets and see mine in the Action App.
Dana White's Contender Series 10 odds as of Tuesday afternoon via DraftKings. Bet on DWCS Week 8 with our DraftKings promo code.
Dana White's Contender Series Week 8 Odds & Best Bets
Featherweight: Ilias Bulaid (-122) vs. Erick Visconde (+102)
Fighter walkouts: Approx. 7:15 p.m. ET
We kick off Week 8 with a fun featherweight matchup between a long and rangy former kickboxer in Ilia Bulaid, taking on a fellow striker with a similar style, but a more compact, powerful build.
We'll start with Bulaid, who opened as a slightly heavier favorite but remains the "A Side" at -122 odds. "The Blade" is a perfect 9-0 since switching to MMA in 2019, following a mostly successful professional kickboxing career. You'd likely be able to guess at his background by watching him fight even without looking up his record, as he's a somewhat prototypical kickboxer.
He uses his length well, staying on the outside and looking to set up big shots while staying calm and avoiding brawls on the inside. His striking is very kick heavy and also dependent on single shots rather than combos, but he keeps his opponents guessing with flashy kicks and misdirection. He loves the question mark kick, and also disguises the levels of his roundhouse kicks well, so opponents who aren't as versed in Thai-style kicking defense often guess wrong and cover their chin only to eat a body kick, or vice versa.
Personally, I'd love to see him round out his game with more punches, both as a means to set up his kicks and as a way to increase his overall work rate. You can only throw so many full power kicks over 15 minutes, and I could see Bulaid dropping decisions due to his relative lack of output when he's unable to finish his opponents, though that hasn't happened yet at lower levels.
As a grappler, he's strong defensively and very well versed in chokes from a front headlock, which is an ideal addition to the game of a length striker. Opponents who shoot from too far get stuck in that position with him, and he typically capitalizes on it.
Erick Visconde has a somewhat similar striking game in that he's patient to the point of almost being passive. However, rather than looking for the perfect shot, he's attempting to draw out his opponent in order to counterstrike. He also looks for big kicks, especially to the legs, but is more active with his hands, often throwing flurries of punches in order to close the distance on taller opponents.
While he's not as technically crisp as Bulaid on the feet, he makes up for it with activity and power. Visconde will also mix in some offensive wrestling, which could be a key factor here. What I especially appreciate is that most of his grappling offense comes from clinches and body locks, which doesn't allow for front head locks to come into play.
Bulaid is the more technically sound fighter here, but Visconde's style could be the perfect kryptonite if he's able to avoid a few big kicks on the outside. Visconde has also proven himself against tougher competition en route to winning the LFA title, which is another point on his side of the ledger. I'm not especially confident in it since I view both men as UFC-ready, but at plus-money Visconde is the side.
The best line is +110 via BetMGM, but I'd take any plus-odds line.
Prediction: Visconde via Decision
Billy's Bet: Erick Visconde (+110, BetMGM)
Strawweight: Aieza Bertolso (-485) vs. Camila Reynoso (+370)
Fighter walkouts: Approx. 7:45 p.m. ET
The first women's fight on the Contender Series since Bella Mir in Week 3 features another heavy favorite, though this time the line is not nearly as wide. Aieza Bertolso will be looking to avoid a massive upset like the one suffered by Mir as she takes on Camila Reynoso.
The 25-year-old Bertolso is a perfect 7-0 professionally after a 16-1 amateur career that saw her win multiple IMMAF championships. As a pro, she picked up the LFA title with an armbar last September and has been out of competition since then. Strangely, she was not originally booked on this season, but came in as a replacement opponent to face Reynoso, though she's had about five weeks of lead time to train for this one.
Like the men who fight before her, Bertolso is perhaps overly patient on the feet, but is a plus-athlete with good speed and crisp striking. Her A game is her grappling, though. She's dominated most of her opponents on the mat from the moment she decides to grapple, with solid top control, good damage, and a diverse submission attack she utilizes as soon as the opportunity presents itself.
The 23-year-old Reynoso is 9-1 as a pro, competing primarily for the "Samurai Fight House" promotion in South America. That's a lower-level organization that also doesn't make full fight videos easily accessible, so there's not a ton of available tape on the Argentinian.
From what I was able to find, she's an aggressive striker who can occasionally get wild, but was able to overwhelm lower-level competition. She also hit some slick foot sweep takedowns and controlled the action from top position well, but I wouldn't describe her as "dominant" in any single aspect of the game. She seems to train at a small gym with just one other pro fighter, and might have UFC-level talent but without the coaching and training to fully realize it yet.
Reynoso struggled more with lesser competition than Bertolso did against some of the best regional prospects around, so the line makes perfect sense. One angle I like, though, is Bertolso in Rounds 2 (or 3). She's very patient, but will undoubtedly be hunting a finish given the need to impress on the Contender Series, so my guess is she turns it up in the second round after getting reads in the first.
Bertolso by Round 2 submission is +650 at FanDuel, with Round 3 at +950.
Prediction: Bertolso via Submission
Billy's Bets: Bertolso Round 2 Sub (+650, FanDuel) | Round 3 Sub (+950, FanDuel)
Featherweight: Ian Escuza (-110) vs. Luca Borando (-110)
Fighter walkouts: Approx. 8:15 p.m. ET
We've got another close matchup between two solid prospects, as 9-1 Luca Borando takes on 7-0 Ian Escuza in featherweight action.
This might be another example of a fight where one fighter has a higher ceiling while the other fighter is better now, as the 30-year-old Escuza has a more developed game. The Peruvian trains with UFC fighters Kevin Borjas and James Llontop in Peru, and has finished all seven of his professional wins.
He's a durable striker who hangs tough in the pocket while his opponents blitz him, picking out cleaner strikes until he is eventually able to find the button. He challenged for a Muay Thai title in 2016 before committing fully to MMA, with that background evident in his game. He's very strong defensively (both in striking and grappling) and loves to work from the clinch, where he throws in plenty of trips/sweeps alongside elbows and knees. His MMA competition is a bit questionable, but he looked great in all of his previous fights.
Borando is just 26 and the fighter with the higher ceiling here, but probably needs a bit more development. He's listed as training at a gym in Italy with just one other pro fighter, and relies a bit too much on his athletic tools over a cogent gameplan in order to win fights.
The southpaw is a bit wild at range, and relies on speed and reflexes for defense over fundamentals. That works very well against lower-level opponents, but very few men have pulled that off at the highest levels of the sport. He also likes to work from the clinch, but struggles with opponents who grapple well from those positions, which is an obvious weakness against Escuza. In my notes while watching tape on him, I said "clinch striker with limited grappling is a strange style," and he's being given a tough stylistic matchup to execute that style against.
Borando has fought most of his career in Cage Warriors, a strong regional promotion, but hasn't fought top prospects there. He also took a submission loss via rear naked choke in 2024, but continues to rely on exposing his back in order to scramble back to his feet when taken down.
Borando may have plugged those holes in his game since his last fight, but that was just two months ago, so I have my doubts, especially given his training environment. The line has also moved to Escuza somewhat heavily since he was listed at even/plus-money on Monday, so I'm riding with the market on Escuza. I logged a bet on him at +100 in the Action App Monday afternoon, so be sure to download (it's free!) to get alerted of my bets before the lines move, but I'd still take his -110 odds at DraftKings.
Prediction: Escuza via knockout
Billy's Bet: Escuza (-110, DraftKings)
Heavyweight: Zarubek Sabanov (-325) vs. Adama Diop (+260)
Fighter walkouts: Approx. 8:45 p.m. ET
While getting women's fights on this season of Contender Series has been a struggle, we've had plenty of heavyweight action, with some more coming in Week 8. The undefeated (4-0) Zarubek Sabanov takes on 6-1 Adama Diop in what could be a very sloppy heavyweight matchup between two big boys with "man on the street" physiques.
Sabanov is the more technically sound fighter by a wide margin here. He's a patient southpaw counter striker who presses forward in hopes of drawing out big swings from his opponents that he can counter, typically with powerful kicks. At his size, it doesn't take many to land, and he wisely preserves his energy well while looking for a big shot or two to finish the fight. He also has pro combat Sambo experience, though there isn't much tape of him grappling outside of pouncing on opponents he's dropped.
Diop is a wild brawler who throws punches in flurries from his hip pockets, with little regard for what's coming back at him. He does have a wrestling background, though, based on his interviews, though it's unclear if that was traditional wrestling or the hybrid sport of Senegalese wrestling (Laamb) that also involves striking. Former ONE FC heavyweight champion Oumar "Reug Reug" Kane was originally a Laamb fighter, and Diop shares plenty of similarities with him.
I was pleasantly surprised with his offensive grappling, though, with some highly technical takedown entries and finishes. He doesn't have a great top game, though at his size getting out from under him is a problem regardless of technique. That could be the ace in the hole here, assuming he's able to stay conscious long enough to execute it.
The other issue I have with Sabanov as this heavy a favorite is that he's somewhat hittable on the feet. Certainly not as hittable as Diop, but I expected cleaner defense given his odds. Between the grappling and the potential for either man to land a quick finish, I'm taking a sprinkle on the big underdog here, whose best line is +285 at FanDuel after falling from more than +400 earlier this week. My official pick is Sabanov by knockout, but Diop has a better shot than the odds imply.
Prediction: Sabanov via knockout
Billy's Bet: Diop (+285, FanDuel)
Lightweight: George Staines (-325) vs. Loai Abushaar (+260)
Fighter walkouts: Approx. 9:15 p.m. ET
The final fight of the night this week should be a good one, as Paddy Pimblett protege George Staines makes his debut stateside. The 26-year-old already has a 10-0 pro record after going 16-1 as an amateur, including an IMMAF title, and has fought solid competition for Cage Warriors, with his last two opponents having a combined 18-0 record coming in.
Staines is tall for lightweight at 6'1" and uses that length primarily to outbox opponents, working behind a sharp jab before looking for heavier shots. He's very slick defensively, utilizing dips, slips and shoulder rolls like a professional boxer, narrowly avoiding shots while staying within his striking range. I'd like to see him mix in more leg attacks in his striking game, though, with Pimblett loudly imploring him to finish combinations with leg kicks during one of his recent bouts.
Staines is also an interesting grappler, with a quick shot and great takedown entries, but somewhat limited takedown finishing ability. I'm not totally sure what to make of that dichotomy, but it was notable that he typically switches to a single leg and looks to elevate his opponents. That's a fairly logical foundation for a taller fighter, but a potentially problematic one in this matchup.
That's because Abushaar stands 6'4" (sometimes listed 6'3"), giving him the height and length edge here. Those single leg attempts don't really work on taller opponents, as Abushaar will be able to keep his base leg on the ground, with that height also neutralizing much of Staines' striking game. Staines won't be able to land jabs without entering into Abushaar's range, so Staines will need to have some different ideas on the feet this time.
Abushaar generally defended takedowns well in his regional tape, though that came against lesser competition. Much like Bulaid in the opening bout, he also uses front chokes to deter/defend takedowns, which also works well thanks to his length and striking ability.
On the feet, he's noticeably slower than Staines but with a more diverse attack, throwing knees and elbows when opponents crash into range. I noted that leg kicks could be a big problem for him, so this matchup is somewhat favorable in that he doesn't have to worry about them unless Staines has dedicated lots of time into adding them to his arsenal.
Abushaar's knees and elbows should also help him land when Staines tries to dip and roll under punches — there's a reason we see that defense more in boxing, where knees aren't legal. Staines gets away with that by virtue of being taller than most of his opponents, but doesn't have that luxury here.
I'm a bit nervous about Abushaar given a bad car accident he suffered about a year ago that left him temporarily partially paralyzed, but he's fought twice in the interim and looked fine. Staines makes sense as a favorite here with his athletic edge and strong pedigree, but it's a tough stylistic matchup, so I'm taking Abushaar at +280 via DraftKings. Like many of the 'dogs this week, that line has dropped significantly after approaching +400 earlier, so there's some sharp action on this side.
Prediction: Abushaar via TKO
Billy's Bet: Abushaar (+280, DraftKings)
